Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by Broke and Bookish. This week's meme is books that feature ______ characters. Since I read a wide variety of books, I chose books that had bookworm characters and cowboy characters; I'm married to a cowboy so it fits!

Sunday, September 24, 2017

About the book:

When Cort Stanton and Aubrey Huxley try to claim the same land in the Oklahoma Land Run, Cort offers a deal--one that could help him keep his freedom. After taking the blame for his brother's crime, Cort needs to lie low, so he gives Aubrey the land for her horse ranch...if she'll hire him. Now he just has to avoid growing too close to the gorgeous seamstress, who can never know his secret.
Aubrey refuses to depend on any man, even one as handsome and kind as Cort. Yet, as they work together to make her dream a reality, it's impossible to imagine life on the prairie without him. And though Aubrey knows Cort has secrets that stand between them, she can't help but wish she could stake a claim on his heart.

About Angie Dicken:

Angie Dicken credits her love of story to reading British literature during life as a military kid in Cambridgeshire, England. Now living in the U.S., she's an ACFW member, a blog contributor to the Writer's Alley, a baseball mom, and a self-proclaimed foodie. You can connect with her on social media and learn about upcoming releases at www.angiedicken.com.

My Thoughts:

Confession time. Until joining Ms. Dicken's street team I hadn't read a Love Inspired novel. Mainly because knowing that it is a Harlequin backed that romance line, I had the "notion" that these are nothing more than the dime store novels that are talked about in historical novels and ones my grandmother talked about. I couldn't have been more wrong. Forgive me, Angie Dicken!

In the short 288 pages the story is rich in detail and historical fact. Cort and Aubrey have secrets and are running from the past. The historical setting of the Oklahoma Land Run is not one that is prevalent in historical novels, one I don't know much about, and Ms. Dicken's uses it to set up a sweet romance, along with theme that our identities are in God. Aubrey is feisty, my kind of heroine, and Cort is tender. They are both relatable and believable characters.

Now that my opinion of Love Inspired books, thank you, Angie Dicken, I will be reading more of them and definitely Ms. Dicken's books.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for a review. I did not have to write a positive review. All thoughts expressed are mine alone. Highly recommended!

Saturday, September 23, 2017

A friend is someone you love and who loves you, someone you respect and who respects you, someone whom you trust and who trusts you. A friend is honest and makes you want to be honest, too. A friend is loyal.

A friend is someone who is happy to spend time with you doing absolutely nothing at all; someone who doesn't mind driving you on stupid errands, who willget up at midnight just because you want to go on an adventure, and who doesn’t have to talk to communicate with you.

A friend is someone who not only doesn't care if you're ugly or boring, but doesn't even think about it; someone who forgives you no matter what you do, and someone who tries to help you even when they don't know how. A friend is someone who tells you if you're being stupid, but who doesn't make you feel stupid.

A friend is someone who would sacrifice their life and happiness for you. A friend is someone who will come with you when you have to do boring things like watch bad recitals, go to stuffy parties, or wait in boring lobbies. You don't even think about who's talking or who's listening in a conversation with a friend.

A friend is someone for whom you're willing to change your opinions. A friend is someone you look forward to seeing and who looks forward to seeing you: someone you like so much, it doesn't matter if you share interests or traits. A friend is someone you like so much, you start to like the things they like.

The word "friend" comes from Old English "frēond", which is actually the present participle of "frēogan", which means "to love" and "to honor".

If you've been following my blog for any time at all you know that due to infidelity and abuse I was divorced and am now remarried. On Thursday night two of my favorite authors did a live Facebook chat and during the conversation Julie Lessman mentioned that she liked her husband and how important it was to actually like your spouse.

When I got married in 1985, at the young age of nineteen, I didn't even think that I needed to like my husband, love him, Yes, but like...that didn't even cross my mind. I look back at twenty-three years of marriage and realize that Yes, I loved my husband, but I really didn't like him very much, which is really sad thinking about the length of twenty-three years.

Reading the definition of friend, above, it really emulates what the foundation of marriage should really be, along with God at the center. I met my husband, Mark online and we spent the first month talking on the phone, email, and even text messages. He is a good ol' country boy, and isn't very tech savvy. His profile picture was of his grand-son as a baby and I wanted to know what he looked really looked like. 😉😉 While in a private message chat, I helped him fix his profile picture. That is really how our friendship started. Even after we met face to face we made sure to foster our friendship. He is truly my best friend, the person I want to talk to about everything.

When Mark and I get into a fight/disagreement I don't just think that I am fighting with my husband, I think he's my friend too. Being friends changes the depth of the relationship. Having a sexual (yes, I just used that word 😉😉) relationship I think can be pretty easy, but actually wanting to spend time with someone, learn about them, care about their thoughts and feelings, actually listen, not just hear to answer, takes time and effort. Especially, in our electronic, social media driven world. I'm sure you've seen what I've seen, you are going out to dinner, a couple across from you, is also out to dinner and instead of talking to each other they have their heads down and their smartphones in their hand instead of talking to each other. Don't get me wrong, I'm guilty of pulling out my smartphone too. Which is why I have decided to leave it in the car on purpose so that I don't feel so drawn to open it and see what's going on. Social media updates will still be there, but time with my husband, children, and my grandchildren are fleeting.

I've often asked myself why couples who are clearly out on a date to spend time alone with each other are staring at their phones, and not talking. I believe the answer is that maybe, just maybe they didn't form a friendship foundation, like I didn't when I married the first time. There aren't enough words to explain how different my marriage is today after only six years of marriage. It's richer, more fun, a lot of the time I feel like we're just dating instead of being married. I believe this is what God intended for marriage, not that feeling of dread, that sometimes happens, when you roll over see their face on the pillow and want to smack them silly because besides them snoring all night long there is a pile of dirty socks on the floor that you now have to pick up because they didn't get them in the basket. As my dad said earlier this week "Ain't love grand."

I would love to hear what you think, so please tell me in the comments!

Just like the leaves on the trees our First Line Friday is going through some changes.

Our First Line Friday group has grown so much over the last year that we will unveil a new way to be involved in First Line Friday on October 6th. So, if you've been thinking about it but not sure you could commit to the weekly blog post, look for information arriving to our blogs soon on how you can be involved!!

What did the president know? And when did she know it?
For the members of SEAL Team Six, it was a rare mission ordered by the president, monitored in real time from the Situation Room. The Houthi rebels in Yemen had captured an American journalist and a member of the Saudi royal family. Their executions were scheduled for Easter Sunday. The SEAL team would break them out.
But when the mission results in spectacular failure, the finger-pointing goes all the way to the top.
Did the president play political games with the lives of U.S. service members?
Paige Chambers, a determined young lawyer, has a very personal reason for wanting to know the answer. The case she files will polarize the nation and test the resiliency of the Constitution. The stakes are huge, the alliances shaky, and she will be left to wonder if the saying on the Supreme Court building still holds true.
Equal justice under law.
It makes a nice motto. But will it work when one of the most powerful people on the planet is also a defendant?
Learn more and purchase a copy.

About Randy Singer:

Randy Singer is a critically acclaimed author and veteran trial attorney. He has penned more than ten legal thrillers, including his award-winning debut novel "Directed Verdict." In addition to his law practice and writing, he serves as a teaching pastor for Trinity Church in Virginia Beach, Virginia. He also teaches classes in advocacy and ethics at Regent Law School and serves on the school's Board of Visitors.

Within the 456 pages of Rule of Law, Mr. Singer brings the reality of our military families up close and personal. Not only the sacrifice made by the member in uniform, but the sacrifice made by the family at home, waiting, hoping, and praying everything is okay. Being a daughter and a former wife of men in the Navy I understand the sacrifice personally. I was really honored to see that Mr. Singer took the time and effort to write a very authentic book.

I believe Mr. Singer's legal career, and his faith led him to write a book that is for such a time as we are living in now. So much of what is in the book is evident in our daily lives with media, politics, and even our military. As I was reading I thought several times 'that sounds familiar.'

This is a phenomenal book! It evokes all kinds of emotions, keeps you on the edge of your seat from the beginning until you turn the last page. If you read one book this fall, make sure it is this one. This would be a perfect book for a book club to read and discuss. There are so many angles that would encourage all kinds of discussions.

Friday, September 22, 2017

Just one more week of September, can you believe that? I can't believe that we are on our way to October.

I received a copy of this book as a Amazon Prime member. I haven't had a chance to read it yet, but it is definitely on my Fall list.

About the book:

Just beyond the Gilded Age, in the mist-covered streets of New York, the deadly Spanish influenza ripples through the city. But with so many victims in her close circle, young socialite Allene questions if the flu is really to blame. All appear to have been poisoned—and every death was accompanied by a mysterious note.
Desperate for answers and dreading her own engagement to a wealthy gentleman, Allene returns to her passion for scientific discovery and recruits her long-lost friends, Jasper and Birdie, for help. The investigation brings her closer to Jasper, an apprentice medical examiner at Bellevue Hospital who still holds her heart, and offers the delicate Birdie a last-ditch chance to find a safe haven before her fragile health fails.
As more of their friends and family die, alliances shift, lives become entangled, and the three begin to suspect everyone—even each other.

First Line:

August 17, 1918

At the bottom of the oak staircase at the stately Cutter house on Fifth Avenue, Florence Waxworth -- tedious busybody and recent debutante---lay askew, shapely legs draped over the last step. One silk slipper perched on the top landing, where it had been violently kicked off at the start of her fall.

Leave your first line in the comments and then go visit my blogging friends and see their first line.

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

Life got in the way and I have missed a few weeks of Can't Wait Wednesday. Sorry about that. What book(s) can't you wait to release or get to on you growing TBR? Let me know in the comments.

Today the book I can't wait for is Pepper Basham's upcoming release Charming the Troublemaker that is set to release in November.

I love this cover!

Back cover copy:

Rainey Mitchell is doing just fine. She has a great job helping children in need, her family is around her, she is mother to a fabulous little girl, and is getting over the betrayal of her ex-husband. Dr. Alex Murdock is not doing so well, as he is forced to work at a rural university, his life is full of secrets surrounding his family, and he has to start over in a new town. Luckily, Rainey, the daughter of his landlord, is there to get him settled. Rainey just wants to stay away from the new professor, who has the same charm as her ex. Unfortunately, they seem to need each other. Rainey needs his grant-writing ability to save her program, and Alex is terrible at the lecturing at which Rainey excels. The two must work together to fulfill their goals, but will they be able to do it? Rainey's insecurities and Alex's obsession with protecting his family could be their undoing.